Perspective

Okay, has everybody gone to the bathroom? You all strapped in? It’s going to be a long trip.

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The video above, “The Known Universe,” attempts to convey would it looks like to travel across the known universe.

Here’s some background info:

It takes viewers from the Himalayas through our atmosphere and the inky black of space to the afterglow of the Big Bang. Every star, planet, and quasar seen in the film is possible because of the world’s most complete four-dimensional map of the universe, the Digital Universe Atlas that is maintained and updated by astrophysicists at the American Museum of Natural History. The new film, created by the Museum, is part of an exhibition, “Visions of the Cosmos: From the Milky Ocean to an Evolving Universe,” at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan through May 2010.

As my friend said, it will either bore you to tears or blow you away. Make you feel insignificant and meaningless — or inspired to be a part of this elegant, mysterious fabric of life. One thing I do know is I want my kids to see it, and that’s one of the great advantages of this blog. I put on here what I want, and it is automatically archived, so it becomes a diary, a journal, my document. Enjoy the ride.